University of Northampton makes higher education WORLD TOP 30 for tackling inequality

The university of Northampton (UON) have ranked 27th out of 699 Higher Education Institutions in the world for tackling inequality.

It was recognised for its work in the 2021 Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, which were published yesterday (April 21).

Vice Chancellor, Professor Nick Petford, said: “The University of Northampton’s mission is to Transform Lives and Inspire Change. A key part of our commitment to social impact is to help reduce inequalities in society, so I am delighted we have been recognised formally for our outstanding work on this, in addition to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals more broadly.”

The rankings are the only global performance tables that assess universities against the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).The SDGs are a collection of 17 interlinked global goals designed to be a blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. They were set in 2015 by the United Nations General Assembly and are intended to be achieved by the year 2030.

UON was placed 11th in the UK for its performance in working towards goal 10, which is to reduce inequalities. This goal measures universities’ research on social inequalities, their policies on discrimination and their commitment to recruiting staff and students from under-represented groups.

The University also tasted success in goal five - Gender Equality - where it was ranked 78th in the world. This goal measures universities’ research on the study of gender equality, their policies on gender equality, and their commitment to recruiting and promoting women.

Northampton’s overall score in the rankings saw it finish joint 21st in the list of UK institutions and placed in the top 200 globally.

You can read more about the rankings on the Times Higher Education website and you can find out more about how the university is working towards reducing inequalities on the UON website.